Utah Hockey Club bolstered its backend by trading for defenseman Olli Määttä.
Utah Hockey Club traded a third-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft for Olli Määttä from the Detroit Red Wings.Ian Cole and Olli Määttä had just won the Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins —something they did twice, in 2016 and 2017 — and Cole was hungry.
“Just over the course of games since all the injuries, you’re always looking at other sources to better your team,” said Utah general manager Bill Armstrong. “I think with what we acquired with Olli — he’s a two-time Stanley Cup winner. He gives a lot of stability to the defense and that’s what we need.”
“I think he’s a good NHL defenseman,” head coach André Tourigny said. “Brings size, experience to the backend.” “No one was really giving us a shot. Like, ‘Oh, they don’t have any No. 1 defensemen, they’re never going to win.’ We just had six guys who were really good,” Cole said. “That wouldn’t have been possible without . He was one of those six guys that was playing really well.”On Wednesday, he was expected to make his Utah Hockey Club debut at Delta Center as the group faces the Calgary Flames and tries to snap a four-game losing streak.
Määttä is in the final season of the two-year, $6 million contract that he signed with Detroit in Feb. 2023. The defenseman not carrying any term on his deal was likely an attractive factor for Utah which is working to remain competitive this season, but not clog up room for its younger players to have more important roles in the future.
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